[Careless Whisper]

Tartans Ready for FBS, MAC debut in 2008
Young Carnegie Mellon squad went 5-7 in its second of two seasons in NCAA Division I FCS competition

by Jayson Thomas, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reporter

PITTSBURGH, Pa. -- Now the real fun begins.

Carnegie Mellon athletic director Daniel Corrigan announced at the time of his hiring in January of 2006 that his athletic department would be making the unheard of leap from NCAA Division III to Division I competition. That included a transition from Division III to Division I FCS to Division I FBS football, which is completed this season.

Three years ago, the Tartans were playing schools such as Case Western Reserve University and Grove City College. Now they’re up against national power Wisconsin in week one.

“There’s definitely those moments where you kind of stand back and take it all in,” said third-year head coach John Elliott, who was picked by Corrigan to help CMU in its transitional phase. “Like when we get out there next month at Camp Randall Stadium to play Wisconsin, we’ll certainly take some time to soak the moment up. No one thought this was possible – I myself had reservations about it at first. But we’ve done a great job building to get to this moment, and while the results on the field haven’t always been the prettiest, I believe we’re ready for this.”

The Tartans enter their maiden FBS voyage with another young team, as 17 of 22 projected starters being freshmen or sophomores. From their new batch of players, seven – tight end David Young, offensive tackles Anthony Tremblay and Jason Baker, defensive end David Brown, middle linebacker Mark Toth, and safeties Todd Andriano and Elvis Washington – are slated to start, and an eighth in Jon Foster will assume kicking duties.

Sophomore tailback Jim Manning is John Elliott’s top offensive weapon, exploding onto the scene with 1,291 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns on 203 carries as a rookie. Fellow second-year Justin Keyes will continue to start under center after an up-and-down freshman season (89.7 QB rtg., 125-243, 1,179 yards, 3 TD, 8 INT), but he has a new receiver to throw to in redshirt junior wide receiver Kevin Cousins, who caught one pass in 2006 for Penn State. Opposite of him will be two-year starter Pete Carlson, who tallied 51 receptions for 544 yards and two touchdowns last year.

Anthony Tremblay and Jason Baker bookend a solid offensive line, with sophomore guards Matt Fitch and Eric Fraser serving as the base. Senior center Rob Hill is the weak spot from a talent standpoint, but should provide veteran leadership with the underclassmen surrounding him.

“I’m excited to see what Jim (Manning) can do for an encore,” said Elliott. “We’ll lean on him, while getting Nate (Satele) and Tramon (McCollum) some touches out of the backfield. We’re also thrilled to have Kevin (Cousins) eligible after sitting out last year, he should give us a much-needed boost on the outside and help Justin (Keyes) improve in the passing game.”

Defensively, John Elliott moved three-star middle linebacker David Brown to defensive end, where he will start opposite of sophomore Andrew Miller. Senior captain Devon Elliott hasn’t missed a game in his collegiate career and started the last 30, while junior Walter Hunter moves into a starting role after rotating in as a reserve last season. The linebacker corps welcomes back sophomore starters Matt Johnson and Aaron Crosby, with first-year Mark Toth taking ownership of the middle.

The strength of the CMU defense could reside in the secondary, however, despite its youth. Sophomore cornerbacks Calvin Burton and Hayden Temple picked off four passes each, with Burton earning NCAA Defensive Player of the Week honors twice during the 2007 season. Raymond Cooper, a senior, started as a sophomore and part of his junior year, and three-star recruit Erik Sellers should contribute in nickel and dime packages. The safeties, Todd Andriano and Elvis Washington, will start right away as freshmen and have been some of the most impressive players in fall camp.

“We have a chance to have a really good secondary,” said Elliott. “The talent is obvious there with Calvin (Burton), Hayden (Temple), and then (Raymond Cooper) as the veteran. But adding guys like Todd (Andriano) and Elvis (Washington) in the back make us so much more athletic, and allow us to better match up with some of the teams on our schedule.”

Freshman Jon Foster replaces the erratic Justin Thompson at kicker, and senior Brad Jones returns for his third year as a punter. Manning and Carlson will return kicks and punts for the Tartans.

CMU might be arriving into FBS competition and the Mid-American Conference (MAC) at the right time, with mid-major football expecting parity to reign supreme despite Utah’s march to the national championship this past January. The MAC in particular is looked at as the weakest of the FBS conferences, outside of the newly promoted Ivy League.

“I think we can make a splash in this first season,” said Elliott. “We would love to rattle off eight or nine wins and shock everyone, but that’s not really realistic yet. But we can be competitive against everyone we face, sneak a couple wins here and there, and continue building on the foundation we established a couple years ago so that when we’re deeper in the timeline, we’re a consistent contender for MAC titles.”

2008 Schedule
(Home games in ALL CAPS; * denotes MAC contest)

09/06 | at Wisconsin (12:30 PM)
09/13 | TULANE (3:30 PM)
09/20 | at Pittsburgh (6:00 PM) – Steel City Showdown
09/27 | BUFFALO * (12:30 PM) – Homecoming
10/04 | at Central Michigan * (12:30 PM)
10/09 | BOWLING GREEN * (6:00 PM)
10/18 | MIAMI (OHIO) * (12:30 PM)
10/25 | at Akron * (12:30 PM)
11/08 | at Ohio * (12:30 PM)
11/15 | DUKE (3:30 PM) – Alumni Day
11/22 | at Western Michigan * (12:30 PM)
11/27 | NORTHERN ILLINOIS * (8:00 PM) – Senior Night

Two-Deep Depth Chart
QB: #3 Justin Keyes (So.), #22 Alex Smith (Jr.)
HB: #27 Jim Manning (So.), #20 Nate Satele (Fr.)
FB: #29 Korey Harper (R-So.), #47 Brandon Brewer (Fr.)
WR: #8 Kevin Cousins (R-Jr.), #83 Kurt Thompson (Jr.)
WR: #82 Pete Carlson (Sr.), #81 Stephen Carter (Fr.)
TE: #48 David Young (Fr.), #86 Calvin Scott (R-Sr.)
LT: #71 Anthony Tremblay (Fr.), #53 Jon Young (Sr.)
LG: #75 Matt Fitch (So.), #64 Andy Clarke (Sr.)
C: #73 Rob Hill (Sr.), #61 Jared Yates (R-So.)
RG: #78 Eric Fraser (So.), #58 Leroy Webb (Sr.)
RT: #72 Jason Baker (Fr.), #76 Phil Patrick (So.)
LE: #99 David Brown (Fr.), #45 Jared Davis (Sr.)
RE: #94 Andrew Miller (So.), #95 Nathan Ford (Fr.)
DT: #60 Devon Elliott (Sr.), #74 Early Morris (R-Sr.)
DT: #91 Walter Hunter (Jr.), #67 Terrance Knox (R-Jr.)
LOLB: #57 Aaron Crosby (So.), #55 Charlie Cohen (Fr.)
MLB: #46 Mark Toth (Fr.), #41 Chris Hill (Fr.)
ROLB: #31 Matt Johnson (So.), #98 Robert Graves (Sr.)
CB: #4 Calvin Burton (So.), #2 Erik Sellers (Fr.)
CB: #1 Hayden Temple (So.), #10 Raymond Cooper (Sr.)
FS: #16 Todd Adriano (Fr.), #21 Xavier Bennett (Sr.)
SS: #28 Elvis Washington (Fr.), #26 Braylon Cunningham (Sr.)
K: #38 Jon Foster (Fr.)
P: #49 Brad Jones (Sr.)
KR: #27 Jim Manning (So.), #82 Pete Carlson (Sr.)
PR: #27 Jim Manning (So.), #82 Pete Carlson (Sr.)